Written Answers Monday 22 March 2010

Scottish Executive

Antisocial Behaviour

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many fixed penalty notices issued in the Lothian and Borders police force area in relation to antisocial behaviour offences in the last three years were to (a) first time and (b) repeat offenders.

Kenny MacAskill: The information requested is not held centrally.

Culture

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria were used by Scottish Screen when considering the application for script development assistance for b4 films’ Between Weathers production.

Fiona Hyslop: The Between Weathers production was eligible to apply for assistance under the Content Development Fund. Scottish Screen consistently assesses all applications for this fund against the same criteria. Those criteria are as follows:

  1. Cultural Impact

  2. Creative Impact

  3. Business Case/Ability to Deliver

  4. Market/Audience Interest.

Education

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking regarding language skills following the publication of the EU green paper, Promoting the learning mobility of young people .

Michael Russell: We continue to promote the importance of modern language skills through Curriculum for Excellence, the new 3-18 curriculum in Scotland, and on into lifelong learning. The Experiences and Outcomes for Modern Languages , published on 2 April 2009, reinforce the expectation that all schools will offer a modern language no later than primary 6, and that language learning will be exciting, engaging and relevant. Curriculum for Excellence guidance also states that every child and young person in Scotland is entitled to experience a broad general education, which includes learning modern languages, to the end of S3.

Education

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how it is encouraging and promoting a higher uptake of the (a) Comenius and (b) Erasmus programmes.

Michael Russell: The Scottish Government is determined to ensure that all young people have opportunities to develop a knowledge and understanding of the world and Scotland’s place in it, a thread which runs through Curriculum for Excellence for all young people at all stages of their learning, and on into lifelong learning.

  The British Council is the United Kingdom National Agency for the Comenius and Erasmus Programmes, and the Scottish Government works closely with them and other international education and outward mobility organisations to promote these programmes in a coherent and joined-up manner. For example, we are currently providing funding for a three year project, led by the National Union of Students Scotland, to promote the outward mobility of Scottish students, including through the Erasmus programme.

Education

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many teachers from Scottish schools took part in the Comenius programme in each of the last four years.

Michael Russell: The EU Comenius Programme has five strands directly involving teachers:

  School Partnerships: pupils, teachers and other staff collaborating with partner schools and colleges in Europe

  Regio Partnerships: local authorities across Europe working together

  In-service Training: professional development in another European country

  Assistants: intending and trainee teacher placements in schools across Europe

  eTwinning: support to find partner schools in Europe and work on joint projects.

  The following tables set out the participation of teachers from Scottish schools in each strand in each of the last four calendar years.

  

 
2006
2007
2008
2009
Totals by Programme Strand


School Partnerships1
972
5762
324
540
2412


Regio Partnerships3
N/A
N/A
N/A
36
36


In-Service Training4
81
64
70
111
326


Assistants5
13
11
2
19
45


eTwinning6
867
236
230
289
841


Annual Totals
1,152
887
626
995
Grand Total: 3,360



  Notes:

  1. Numbers are estimated based on average involvement of 12 teachers per school.

  2. 2007 was the first year of the new EU Lifelong Learning Programme. Numbers of partnerships appear to be significantly lower due to a change in award structure from single-year to multi-year grants.

  3. The Regio strand was launched in 2008 and the first applications were submitted on 20 February 2009. Numbers are estimated based on average involvement of 6 teachers per school.

  4. Based on actual teacher numbers attending in-service training in another European country.

  5. Based on one teacher co-ordinating Comenius Assistants per host school in Scotland.

  6. Based on actual number of Scottish teacher registrations to the eTwinning online portal.

  7. The eTwinning programme was first launched in 2005 and there was a much lower uptake in its first full year than in subsequent years of the programme.

Education

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many students from Scottish institutions took part in the Erasmus programme in each of the last four years.

Michael Russell: The numbers as provided by British Council (the UK National Agency for Erasmus) are as follows:

  

Year
Numbers


2005-06
982


2006-07
944


2007-08
1,353


2008-09
1,273

Housing

Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the sufficiency of the Affordable Housing Investment Programme budget for 2010-11 to fund the building of the 10,000 homes that both Shelter Scotland and the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations recommend are required.

Alex Neil: We have published our planned Affordable Housing Investment Programme for 2010-11. We are currently planning to approve 21,500 new/improved affordable homes over the three year period 2008-09 to 2010-11, in line with our stated target.

  We are looking to the UK government to provide acceleration of funding into 2010-11 to allow us to do even more.

Housing

Cathie Craigie (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how tenants will be involved in the national housing trust initiative.

Alex Neil: The National Housing Trust initiative is being developed in partnership with local government. It will be for local authorities to determine the target tenants for any homes acquired under the scheme and the tenant involvement arrangements that should operate at local level. The Scottish Government and the Scottish Futures Trust plan to make further information about the proposed scheme available to local authorities shortly for sharing with local stakeholders, including tenants’ groups.

Housing

Mary Mulligan (Linlithgow) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many sheltered housing units have been built in each year since 2000.

Alex Neil: The number of new sheltered housing units built each year in Scotland is not held centrally.

  However sheltered housing stock numbers in the social sector are published each year by council area. These figures can be found on the Scottish Government’s website using the following link http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Housing-Regeneration/HSfS/SpecialNeedsHousing.

Housing

Marilyn Livingstone (Kirkcaldy) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following a reduction from £16.9 million to £9.2 million in the funding allocated to Fife from the Affordable Housing Investment Programme, how it will support those waiting for housing in Fife.

Alex Neil: The proposed Affordable Housing Investment Programme (AHIP) for 2010-11 is lower due to the accelerated funding made available in 2008-09 and 2009-10 which came from the 2010-11 budget. It was widely known that the AHIP would be lower in 2010-11 due to this accelerated funding.

  At present, the £9.2 million assumed for Fife is simply a Resource Planning Assumption for programme development purposes. Ministers will consider the allocations further once detailed programmes are available.

  Over the last three years - including the 2010-11 Resource Planning Assumptions - Fife will have had access to £43.513 million of Scottish Government AHIP funding, an annual average of £14.504 million. In addition, Fife has also been allocated funding from the Scottish Government for new Council House Building, funding from the Open Market Shared Equity Pilot scheme, and the Rural Homes for Rent scheme, highlighting the Scottish Government’s support for affordable housing in Fife.

Housing

Marilyn Livingstone (Kirkcaldy) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take to ensure the provision of the 500 homes annually that Fife reportedly needs, given a reduction from £16.9 million to £9.2 million in the funding allocated to Fife from the Affordable Housing Investment Programme and that, as a result, housing associations are predicted to build only a fifth of those homes.

Alex Neil: In the last two years, the Scottish Government has provided funding to approve the construction of 515 affordable housing units from the Affordable Housing Investment Programme. The planned number of Affordable Housing Investment Programme approvals for 2010-11 is still being developed. In addition, the Scottish Government has also provided funding for nearly 170 additional units through the Council House Building programme, the Open Market Shared Equity Pilot, and the Rural Homes for Rent scheme, highlighting the Scottish Government’s support for affordable housing in Fife.

Housing

Marilyn Livingstone (Kirkcaldy) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, following a reduction from £16.9 million to £9.2 million in the funding allocated to Fife from the Affordable Housing Investment Programme, how it will support jobs in the construction industry in Fife.

Alex Neil: The Scottish Government has already made available £120 million of accelerated funding in 2008-09 and 2009-10, which came from the 2010-11 budget, in order to support affordable housing across Scotland during the economic downturn, providing vital work for the construction industry. Fife benefited from a share of this funding.

  The result is that over the last three years – including the 2010-11 Resource Planning Assumptions – Fife will have had access to £43.513 million of Scottish Government Affordable Housing Investment Programme funding, an annual average of £14.504 million. In addition, Fife has also been allocated funding from the Scottish Government for new Council House Building, funding from the Open Market Shared Equity Pilot scheme, and the Rural Homes for Rent scheme, highlighting the Scottish Government’s support for affordable housing and the construction industry in Fife. The only way to increase housing investment further would be for the UK Chancellor to make more money available in 2010-11 in the budget on 24 March 2010.

  In addition, as part of the Fife Housing Association Alliance preferred developer agreement that operates in Fife to deliver the Affordable Housing Investment Programme, the Key Performance Indicators used to monitor performance include a Training and Employment indicator. In the last two years, 145 beneficiaries of the Fife Works project are undertaking additional training not covered by mainstream provision. In addition to this, 118 individuals have secured employment opportunities and 21 work placements have been secured to date, with a number of additional placements due to start in the near future. The Fife Works project undertakes a job brokerage service which links emerging training and employment opportunities from major capital projects and procurement packages in Fife.

Housing

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will introduce a landlord accreditation scheme.

Alex Neil: The Scottish Government supports Landlord Accreditation Scotland (LAS), a national body which allows letting agents and landlords who meet required standards to become accredited.

  LAS was set up in April 2008 with the aim of promoting best practice and professionalism in the private rented sector. LAS support tenants and landlords through provision of advice, guidance and training.

Special Health Boards

Michael Matheson (Falkirk West) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what capital funds are being made available to NHS boards and Special Health Boards in 2010-11.

Nicola Sturgeon: NHS boards have been given a formula capital allocation of £279 million for 2010-11.

  Details of NHS boards formula allocations together with Special Board minor works allocations for the period 2010-11 are as follows:

  

NHS Board
2010-11 £ Million


Ayrshire and Arran
18.472


Borders
5.196


Dumfries and Galloway
7.769


Fife
15.655


Forth Valley
12.515


Grampian
25.256


Greater Glasgow
83.887


Highland
16.014


Lanarkshire
25.398


Lothian
44.331


Orkney
0.770


Shetland
0.873


Tayside
21.226


Western Isles
1.638


Total
279.000



  

Special Health Board
£ Million


Scottish Ambulance Service
19.338


National Services Scotland
6.308


NHS 24
1.319


The State Hospitals Board for Scotland
39.181


National Waiting Times Centre
7.054


NHS Education for Scotland
0.000


NHS Health Scotland
0.290


NHS Quality Improvement Scotland
0.250


Total
73.740



  In addition boards will receive allocations for initiatives such as primary care modernisation, medical equipment and radiotherapy equipment.

  The total health net capital budget for 2010-11 is £557.4 million.

Student Finance

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made to the UK Government regarding job reductions at the Student Loans Company in Glasgow.

Michael Russell: The redundancy announcement is the result of changes to student finance service delivery for English students attending English universities, between the Student Loans Company (SLC) and the UK Government Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and is therefore a matter for the UK Government, not the Scottish Government.

  However, whilst the Scottish Government has no powers to intervene, following the redundancy announcement I discussed the possibility of compensation for the loss of the 45 Hillington jobs with David Lammy, the UK Minister for Higher Education, by moving jobs in the Student Loan Company from England to Scotland. He has failed to provide any such assistance.

Student Finance

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what interactions it has had with the Student Loans Company regarding the job reductions announced in January 2010.

Michael Russell: The redundancy announcement is the result of changes to student finance service delivery for English students attending English universities, between the Student Loans Company (SLC) and the UK Government Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and is therefore a matter for the UK Government not the Scottish Government.

  However, whilst the Scottish Government has no powers to intervene, I met with the Chief Executive of the SLC on the evening prior to the redundancy announcement being made public. We discussed the help the government could provide, and I gave a commitment that the government would assist the SLC in managing this difficult situation.

  At an early stage my officials discussed PACE support with the SLC’s management – PACE is our national strategic partnership framework for responding to redundancy situations. PACE is working in partnership with the SLC’s outplacement agency to provide a wide range of support to SLC personnel including benefits information, career planning, access to government funded training, financial advice and long term support.

  I am regularly updated by my officials on the situation and met the chief executive again on 17 March 2010 for an update on the voluntary redundancy programme.

Teachers

Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what communication it has had with local authorities to ensure that teacher supply lists are open to everyone to apply.

Michael Russell: The Code of Practice on the Use of Temporary Contracts for Teachers, developed by the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers, of which the Scottish Government is a member, states that employees on temporary contracts should not be treated any less favourably than those on permanent contracts. The Code takes into account the Employment Rights Act 1996, as amended by the Employment Relations Act 1999 and Employment Act 2002, as well as the Part-Time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) and Fixed Term Workers Regulations (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) 2002.

  In addition two of the recommendations of the Teacher Employment Working Group report published last year referred to post probationers and supply work. These are:

  Recommendation 4: Local authority employers should wherever possible use post-probation teachers to fill supply vacancies

  Recommendation 5: Local authorities should consider making more use of permanent supply pools to ensure stable employment opportunities are available to post-probation teachers.

  The purpose of these recommendations is to help to develop more opportunities for those newly qualified by reducing the use of retired teachers in supply. The recommendations on supply are for local authorities as the employers of teachers to take forward while bearing in mind both employment and age legislation.

Teachers

Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is discriminatory for local authorities to restrict teacher supply lists to internal applicants only.

Michael Russell: Local authorities as employers have statutory obligations under current employment and equality legislation to promote open and fair competition. They also, however, have statutory obligations in relation to existing employees and their advertising strategy for individual posts, including access to supply lists will reflect their staffing needs and circumstances at the time.

Teachers

Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it monitors the employment policies of local authorities in relation to teacher supply lists.

Michael Russell: The Scottish Government does not monitor these policies. Local authorities are distinct corporate bodies whose powers and duties are set out in statute. They are responsible for ensuring that they act lawfully in managing their day to day business, which includes their employment policies in relation to teacher supply lists.